My Mam Brenda contracted polio aged 3 in 1949, 4 years before Dr Jonas Salk created his life saving vaccine. My Mam was paralysed by polio and left severely disabled. She was hospitalised for her entire childhood and had numerous operations to try and improve her mobility but to no avail. Everyone who knows her knows she has always lived her life to the full despite a lifetime of physical struggle and she continues to do so. Long before there was such a thing as disability rights she had to adapt to a world that did not cater for disabled people. But in every situation she found herself in her disability never stood in her way of doing what she wanted to do. Theatres, cinemas, trains and buses did not have accessible seating so my Mam had to jam herself in to rows and seats but she did so willingly because there was no other option. Even the medical establishments and vehicles that were there to help her were not always accessible so she had to climb in and out of ambulances and up and down steps and stairs. Fortunately there wont be that many people out there who are still living with the effects of polio, or infantile paralysis as it was called then, thanks to medicine and science. There aren’t many people out there who still wear callipers, or leg irons/steels as they used to be called, on their legs. And there cannot be many people, if any, who have walked on crutches for 70 years. And my Mam hasn’t just walked from A to B on her crutches. She walked along the Blackpool Golden Mile and around London and Paris on them. Danced at night clubs on them. Worked at a factory on them. Carried the extra weight of me in her tummy on them. Recovered from a Caesarean, hysterectomy, mastectomy, radiotherapy and a hip replacement on them. For a lot of years now she has had to rely on a wheelchair for longer journeys but for most of that time she self propelled round supermarkets and hospitals and car parks so she could remain as independent as possible. Her arms have always been very strong as she had to rely on her extraordinary upper body strength to get around but her arms are painful and a lot weaker now. And this was all caused by polio. However despite polio having had a devastating effect on her life she has remained positive and happy and never let anything get her down. My Mam has been a member of the British Polio Fellowship since the 1960’s and although polio has now largely been eradicated throughout the world the Fellowship continues to support people like my Mam who now suffer from Post Polio Syndrome. If anyone would like to make a donation to a truly wonderful charity I would be extremely grateful. I realise that Covid has had a detrimental affect on everyone’s finances but I would honestly appreciate every penny or pound you can give. Thank you so much!